Improvement in padlocks



lJOSEPH CORSET-r.

ASSRTOTHEAM. SSE-Al.. L OCKCO,

www PADLOCK. Pmmn Nov 29 1870 duittd tapes @met dtlltw. y,

Letters Patent No. 109,717, dated November 29, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT lN yPADLCJCKS.

The Schedule referred to ln these Letters Patent and making part ol' the s'ame.

l I, JOSEPH CORBETT, of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and improved Padlock, of which the following is al specification.

Nature and Objects of the I mention.

lhe improvements relate- First, to a mode of construct-ing the key-bit andthe tumblers and bolt which are operated thereby, so that the coincident adjustment and operation of said tumblers and holt lnay he effected by the contact of parts of the key-bit which are not in one and the same radial pla-ne.

Second, to a device lto eject the released shackle without the use of' a spring, and to hold the spring bolt in its retracted position in readiness for the re-v turn and automatic locking of the shackle.

Description of the Accompanying Dna/wing.'

Figure l is a front view of a. lock illustrating my invention, with the face-plate andthe key-bow removed so as to show theinterior of the lock and the form of the key-bit. 'lhe parts are here represented vas unlocked.

Figure 2 is a section at a a,'g. l.

Figure 3'is a front View, with thefface-,plate and tumblers removed,,showing the shackle locked..

Figure 4 is a sectional view looking toward thc face-plate, and showing the shackle and' bolt locked.

Figure 5 is a top view, showingr the shackle and its hinge-in section on the line y y, fig. l.

Figure 6 is a side view of the key.

General Description. i

The padlock has a case, A, and a cap, B, secured together by means of studs a a on the former, which protrude through holes b b in the latter, and arc rivelted down upon the cap in the usual manuel'.

a' is a shoulder or rahbct on the case, into which fits the flanges b of the cap, the object of which arrangement is to prevent the introduction of a chisel into the crack between the cap and case for the purpose of prying` them apart. Any such attempt with my arrangement would betray itself hy the doubling up of the Ilange 011 the cap, and the tampering would be revealed.

Itis further ydesigned to more eiiiectually exclude wet.

The shackle G is hinged on a pintle, C', which is attached to the rounded lug ou the case A, and the shackle is held on the said pintle by thc'riveting on of the cap, through which passes one end'of the said pintlc.

The pintlc C' of the shackle is larger within the shackle than where it passes through thc case. By

this means it is strengthened for its duty. The pivots at the ends are of smaller size, so as to avoid boring away too much of the face-plate.'

c c are annular projections on the hub of the shackle, and occupy corresponding grooves in the plates of the case and cap, respectively. l,

These annular projections answer three purposes:

First, they increase the strength of the joint, as they give an additional bearing for the hub beyond etrate the plates of 4the case and cap.

'1 Second, they make a better and closer joint, tending to prevent lateral play or shake, and also opposing to a greater degree -than usual the access of water to the inside of the lock.

Third, in case of drilling away the ends c2 c2 of the pintle, the shoulders c c will still maintain their hold in the cheeks and oppose thewithdrawal ot' the hub 0f the shackle from its' bearings.

It may also be mentioned, that the nose of the shackle has on all' sides projections c3, which shut down upon the top of the case and aid in keeping out water. The top of the case slants off ou each side from this point of closure so as to shed water therefrom.

stead of depending upon a ment.'

The tumblers D D D D are pivoted upon'a st ud, d, which rises from the cheek-plate of the case A,

spring to perform the movewill be explained when describing the operation.

The form of the tumblers may be seen by examining the upper one of the set. A description of one will apply to each one of the set, excepting that the Ynotchcsou the edges are various, for reasons which are familiar to experts, and will therefore be but cursorily explained iu describing the operation.

Each tumbler has an open center, in which the bit vof the key operates. Near the hinging portion is atgages the inside of the case, its constant tendency being to throw the tumbler upward.A

that which is due to the ends ofthe pintle, which penf In the event of water entering at any point itis- Fourth, a pivoted'dog, which is moved by a projection on the bolt-shank, to throw up the shackle, in

and are moved by the key K or by the springs d1, as

tached a spring, dl, which tends downward and en d is a projection on the tumbler, which comes in Contact with the fence E when the tumbler flies upward in the act of locking.

Between the projection d and the upper corner of the tumbler are several notches, one ot' which, d, is deep, and forms a true notch, while the others d* are shallow, and form false notches. VThe true notch d" is to receive the fence E on the bolt-shank when the lock is being opened by the key in the legitimate manner. The false notches are to catch the fence when the lock is attempted to be picked by tentation.

,F is the bolt which engages the notch of the shackle m is the uit ol" thebolt which is pivoted on t-he stud o is the tail of the holt-shank, which is acted on by the bit of the key u the act ot' throwing the bolt after the tumblers have been so arranged that the fence E may enter into the true notch d of each tumbler, the latter having been arranged in a prescribed, order by the notched key-bit, which is adapted for that purpose.

p is a spring which tends to throw upward the tail of the bolt-shank, and to throw the felice E out of the notches da in the tumblers when the bolt-shank is free to move.

G is a dog pivoted to a stud on the case A. two functions:

First, at a certain stage in the operation ot unlocking, the dog lifts the nose of the shackle beyond the range of the bolt F, so thatI the shackle is freed.

Second, when the lock is open the dog G engages the bolt F so as,to holdit back in readiness for the entrance of the nose of the shackle,the lock being of the seltllocking description.

A spring, g, in the rear of the dog, bears upon it, and rests against one .or the other of two flat portions ofthe dog, so as to hold itin onelor the other of its portions up or down, as the lock is in the unlocked or locked position.

Below the dog is a stud, which, in the act of nnlocking, is pressed against by a projecting task on the bolt-shank, so that, as the bolt is thrown back, the dog is rotated and lifts theshackle as before stated.

The springs (ll p r/ are o German silver, and are not so apt to rust'as springs ot other metal.

The tumblers are plates with open centers, and are termed ring tumblcrs. lhe key is inserted upsidedown, and the bit rotates around the key-pin within the opening in the middle of the tumblers.

The latter are four in number in the illustration shown, and cach is operated by its own particular step on the bit. rlhese steps are of different height, that is, radial distances from the center of rotation. Each tumbler is specially constructed in reference to the step on the. bit that is to work it, so that a given point in the motion of the key the tumblers shall all be in such correspondencewthat the felice on the holt-shank shall enter all the gates inthe tuniblers. i

rlhe further step on -the key-bit operates the bolt itself at the proper time, the motions derived there- It has from heilig- First, to insert the fence into the gate.

Second, to withdraw the bolt from the notch in the shackle.

Third, to lift the nose of the shackle.

The operation of the bolt is by the pressure ot' the bit of' the key onthe tail ofthe bolt, and the bolt is hung upon a center below the level of the key-pin.

lhe kcy operates the tumblers andthe bolt by turning in either direction, the shape of the lower interior edges of the tumblers and the shape of thc bolt-tail' being adapted to receive the impulse of the several steps on the bit of the key..

it to be introduced at a somewhat narrow slit, and the bulbous` end of the bit is widened so as to allow the prolongation of' the operative surface ot" each step.

The narrou-'ness ci' the slit in the lock-plate precludes the use of a false key with a thick bit.

lhe face ot' the enlarged portion of' the bit isoccupied. by a series ot steps marked in the drawing, tig. (i, s1 s2 s s4 S5. The former four are for operating the tumblers; the latter one, s, is for operating the bolt.

Ilhe face ot' the key-bit, it has already been stated,` has steps, and these have curved surfaces. It might be suticient in some cases to make all these curves arcs of circles having common center, but I derive an additional advantage from another arrangement. The curves of the steps s stsa s* s? are struck from various centers, and have or may have radii of dif`- ferent lengths.

rlhe object is as follows:

It is designed that the steps 4shall not all commence at the same time to operate the tulnblers and the bolt. By a suitable disposition of the curves they may be brought into action serially, and the tumblers having started at different times, if desired, and moving at dilerent ratesthey have different distances to move, may eventually, but not neees. sai-ily, simultaneously reach the point Vat which their gates are ready to receive the fence.

' The curves ot' the bit now come into a sort of correspondence, as they are required to hold the tumblers steady while the step si comes in contact with the tail of the bolt and tips the latter, which causes the fence to enter the gate,. the bolt to clear itself ot' the shackle, and the tusk on the bolt-shank to turn the dog andlitt the nose of the shackle.

It would be possible to cause a series ol' symmetrical curves, so to speak, to act` at the proper times upon the lower interior edges of the'tulnblers, the latter being cutaway in such manner as to produce the desired effect; but I prete' as an additionatse-- curity to a given lock to so arrange the mechanism that it cannot he operated by a key not specifically constructed as I havedcscribml.

My lock vand key are so made that the operative points of' the diiierent steps ot' the key', 'l'. c., `those points which act upon the respective tumblers to bring all into coincidence, are not in a common plane, and the points in the tulnblers on which they operate are not in line. It i's therefore impossible `to construct a thin-bitted or skeleton key with which the said lock can be opened.

I am aware that padlocks have been constructed with a projection on the bolt to elevate the shackle by direct contact therewith. not claim;

Claims.

l claimas my invention- 1. The key, constructed with a thick bit, the steps of which have operating faces of varying curves, in combination with the ring-tumblers D and with a i bolt'so constructed that the said tumhlers and bolt,

or any two of them, will bel adjusted or actuated by the contact ot' parts of, the key not in one andthe same radial plane.

2. 'The pivoted dog G, operated positively by a tnsk or equivalent device on the bolt-shank, to lift the nose of the shackle and hold the bolt in its retracted position.

JOSEPH GORBETT.

Witnesses;

E. PARKMAN, C. E. MILLS.

This, therefore, I do' 

